Learning Goals for Psych 472: Human Factors Psychology
Beth Kerr
The goals of this course are to give students opportunities:- To gain an understanding of human strengths and limitations by reviewing the literature on human perception, cognition, memory, attention, biomechanics, and motor control/learning.
- To gain an understanding of guidelines for displays, controls, anthropometry, office ergonomics, work physiology, and manual material handling.
- To appreciate and practice the motto “Honor the User” by employing techniques from psychological research, usability testing, and contextual inquiry to ensure that you are able take advantage of the users’ perspectives. To collect information from users via questionnaires, observation, and interviews; to develop strategies for encouraging users to “talk” – providing you the benefits of their experience.
- To write concise reports (called briefings) that summarize your findings and recommendations for improvement. To organize and analyze data. To select graphic presentations that direct readers’ attention to important results.
- To develop your group-work skills by working with your classmates to analyze applied problems and propose solutions.
- To work individually to identify the strengths and weaknesses of a real-world workplace and propose needed changes.
Students will be encouraged to reflect on the information they learn about human factors and ergonomics and apply it to their own lives, homes, workplaces, and the world around them.